Hard to Be Good (Hard Ink #3.5) by Laura Kaye

made that crystal clear.
    Hurt pierced through the warmth that had filled Jeremy’s chest a moment before, and he tried to push it back. Charlie was shy. A little anxious. And this was all still so new between them.
    “What’s up?” Jeremy said, squeezing the releases on the table so he could fold and put it away.
    Kat looked back and forth between them for a long moment, like maybe she was debating giving them shit, but then she thumbed over her shoulder and said, “All hell’s breaking loose upstairs. You might wanna come see.”

 
    Chapter 8
    J ER E M Y F O L L O W E D K A T and Charlie into the gym, wondering what in the world Kat could be talking about. They weren’t even all the way through the door before he knew.
    Eileen had found the cat. Or vice versa. Either way, the result was the same: pandemonium.
    The puppy chased the cat in circles around, over, and through the gym equipment, all the while barking and yapping at the top of her little lungs. Every once in a while, the cat would get cornered, and then there’d be a series of hisses and a sharp yelp as Eileen pushed her luck and got her nose swiped for it.
    Jeremy couldn’t hold back his laughter. “See, Charlie? I told you it would be fun.”
    Nick marched across the gym to where they were standing. “What in the ever-living fuck, Jeremy? A cat?”
    “Aw, come on. He was over in the ruins. I couldn’t leave him out there,” Jer said, chuckling as the cat finally made his way onto a shelf of equipment Eileen couldn’t reach. Didn’t stop the runt from trying, though. “Besides, he only has one eye.”
    “Yeah, we noticed,” Nick said. Eileen continued to bark up at the cat.
    Shane, Marz, and Beckett joined their group.
    “Can we keep him?” Marz said. “Because if we’re going to have a three-legged dog and a one-legged man, then having a one-eyed cat is right up our alley.”
    Jeremy pointed to Marz as if he’d never heard anything more logical. “See? My thoughts exactly.”
    Nick’s gaze narrowed. “Dude. The last thing we need is animal-induced chaos.”
    “Actually,” Kat said, elbowing Nick. “Some animal-induced chaos might provide a nice distraction from the other kinds of chaos we’re dealing with.”
    Nick rolled his eyes.
    Shane rubbed his hands together. “That means we need a name.” The other guys all groaned because Shane had been gloating for weeks that Becca had picked his suggestion of a name for the puppy.
    “How about something pirate-y, like Matey or Patch?” Kat said.
    “Those aren’t bad,” Jeremy said, grinning. “Come on, let’s hear ’em.”
    “How about Willy?” Marz said. “You know, after Willy the one-eyed wonder worm.”
    The guys all busted into laughter. Even Charlie couldn’t hold it back.
    “That’s so bad,” Kat said, making them all laugh harder. “What about Wink?” Nick said, getting more into the spirit.
    “Or Blink,” Shane said.
    “Or Uno,” Beckett said, trying to hold back a smile. Laughter and words of approval followed each new suggestion.
    Finally, Eileen’s barking died down, and Jeremy looked over to find her curled up at the bottom of the shelving unit directly below where the cat sat unhappily eyeballing her.
    Becca joined them, followed a minute later by Sara and Emilie. “What are you guys up to?” Becca asked, wrapping her arms around Nick’s stomach. He was wearing an old black Orioles long-sleeved shirt, which made Jeremy wonder if she’d seen his new ink yet.
    “Naming this goddamn cat,” Nick said, causing another round of chuckles.
    “Oh, good. We’re keeping him?” Becca asked.
    “Of course, we’re keeping him,” Jeremy said, giving her a wink. “And thanks for being on my side, unlike your grumpy boyfriend.”
    “How about Minion?” Sara said. “Some of those little guys from that kids’ movie only have one eye.”
    Jeremy crossed his arms and nodded. “Then I could say I have a minion. I like it.”
    “What about Peekaboo?”